The Elephants of Style: A Trunkload of Tips on the Big Issues and Gray Areas of Contemporary American English

by Bill Walsh

Book Overview

Advice on good writing from everybody's favorite editorial curmudgeon

Persnickety, cantankerous, opinionated, entertaining, hilarious, wise...these are a few of the adjectives reviewers used to describe good-writing maven Bill Walsh's previous book, Lapsing Into a Comma. Now, picking up where he left off in Lapsing, Walsh addresses the dozen or so biggest issues that every writer or editor must master. He also offers...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0071422684
• ISBN13: 9780071422680
• Release Date: March 2004
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Companies
• Length: 238 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

The First Church of Walsh

Elephants of Style, the play on the title of Strunk and White's famous book aside, is an essential for any writer as well as any one who cares about where the English language is headed. One really can't go wrong with a book from Bill Walsh. I wish I could say at least one thing negatively about this book, but I can't. If you haven't purchased this book do so soon. There was so much I learned here and even now I'm not following one rule that Walsh suggests, but I am a creature of habit and old habits, as they say, die hard. There I did it. Now, purchase Bill Walsh's book and see what I'm talking about. See also Walsh's Lapsing Into a Comma : A Curmudgeon's Guide to the Many Things That Can Go Wrong in Print--and How to Avoid Them. You will be glad you did.

Not for elephantary readers

Although I don't agree one hundred percent with Mr Walsh--and I am sure he would be glad to know that I don't--his book deserves top marking for its thoroughness. The book is full of witticisms that make it a good read and almost convince us that Bill Walsh is always right, even though his arguments are always very well fundamented. But as for me, I will continue saying that I have "a healthy diet" instead of "a healthful one", and pronouncing "short-lived" with a short "i" instead of a long one.

Grammar with a funny bone

Almost nothing is as boring as learning the rules of grammar. The Elephants of Style, however, makes the subject humorous and easier to both read and learn about. The author uses great(and often funny ) examples to teach students about everything from parts of speech to plagarism. I would recommend this book to college freshman, English teachers, or anyone struggling with grammar. Of course, grammar may never lose the title of "boringest of them all," but at least there is a little humor at the end of the tunnel.

The next Bill Safire?

Visiting the front lines of the grammar and usage wars with Bill Walsh is a pleasure for writers and readers alike. Like his previous work, Lapsing Into a Comma, this entertaining and enlightening book shows Walsh has got a great ear and a great sense of humor.

Who left me out of the ?Grammar can now be amusing? loop ?!

I found myself laughing out loud as I read Bill Walsh's "The Elephant's of Style."Reminiscent of "Woe is I" this title actually entertains as it enlightens. Some of Walsh's best lines were "Split infinitives are the chicken cacciatore of the English Language" and "Who died and left me in charge of the English language?"I want to know where Bill Walsh was when I was being drilled in grammar back in school! First they started teaching kids phonics and blends using fun songs and hand motions and now this?! I missed out on all the fun!I especially enjoyed the section entitled "The Lies Your English Teacher Told You: Big Myths of English Usage" (I actually wiped my brow at one point in that chapter.) His appendix, "The Curmudgeon's Stylebook" is a valuable addition as well.Wonderful stuff, easy to remember and apply.... Excellent for those who got stuck in the "grammar rules" and "strict critiques" from the past.... Free up the negative through process and just get through to the mechanics in this user friendly guide. The index will take you straight to your area of interest and then read the rest just `cause its so darn fun...... oh, I wonder if it's against the rules to insert periods in a row like that?Better refer to my copy of "Elephants of Style" now.....